


Fall From A Shooting Star

by TenSpencerRiedPlease



Category: Black Panther (2018), Iron Man (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Fluff, M/M, Protective T'Challa (Marvel), Sweet T'Challa (Marvel), Tony Stark Needs a Hug, concubine!Tony, idk bois but I hope y'all like it, idk this is some kind of AU, sort of historical but also not really
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-09
Updated: 2018-11-09
Packaged: 2019-08-21 06:08:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,929
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16571114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TenSpencerRiedPlease/pseuds/TenSpencerRiedPlease
Summary: Tony wraps his arms around T’Challa’s waist, pressing his face into his neck as T’Challa laughs and swats him away. “Naughty thing- I have things to do that aren’t you,” he says.“But you’d prefer me,” Tony reminds him, earning another laugh.“So I do, but we don’t always get what we want now do we?” he asks.Tony grins, “you always get what you want from me,” he points out





	Fall From A Shooting Star

**Author's Note:**

> Idk what this is but its a somethin! I think its fun anyways. Also I miss writing IronPanther stuff so I'm back on that bullshit lol.

Tony wraps his arms around T’Challa’s waist, pressing his face into his neck as T’Challa laughs and swats him away. “Naughty thing- I have things to do that aren’t you,” he says.

“But you’d prefer me,” Tony reminds him, earning another laugh.

“So I do, but we don’t always get what we want now do we?” he asks.

Tony grins, “you always get what you want from me,” he points out. It helps that he’s had training, especially in T’Challa’s tastes, but Tony ignores most of that. He’s sure its what draws T’Challa to him to begin with. He’s been reliably informed that T’Challa has no taste for the average person in his position and yet the prince visits him regularly, a little too regularly if others have a say in it. T’Challa doesn’t listen, he’s stubborn, and Tony is glad for it. He’s probably a little too attached to T’Challa considering this isn’t a relationship meant to last but Tony has always been something of a masochist.

T’Challa turns, gently wrapping an arm around his waist, “you’re trained to give me whatever I want,” he points out. There’s a note of disapproval there, ironic considering how often he visits Tony, not that he’s complaining.

Tony laughs softly, “that training never took and you know it. I just like you.” Not that T’Challa is the only one with a taste for plucky concubines, but people don’t much actively seek him out anymore. Not when the prince seems to have staked a claim on him.

T’Challa reaches out gently, fingers trailing across Tony’s cheek. “Do you?” he asks softly.

“Wouldn’t be here if I didn’t, T’Challa,” he murmurs. If this were a situation he didn’t want to be in he would find a way to leave and it wouldn’t be the first time. Tony is not in the habit of staying in shitty situations. He’s sure T’Challa doesn’t really believe that but whatever moral qualms he has about their relationship are trumped by his obvious fondness for Tony.

After a moment of consideration T’Challa leans in and kisses Tony softly. “Be in my room tonight,” he murmurs, “and wear purple.” Tony rolls his eyes but gets a firm look from the prince.

“You know I’ll do it so stop looking at me like that,” he says. T’Challa and his damn purple. Tony prefers reds and golds or, if he’s feeling adventurous, bright shades of blue but T’Challa’s favorite color is purple and he likes the contrast of the color on Tony’s skin. He’s not as pale as some of the others in his position, actually he’s quite dark in comparison but that’s his Italian heritage. Still, olive skinned or not he’s far paler than anyone who is Wakandan born so the contrast of the dark purples T’Challa prefers against his skin is still obvious. Truth be told he’s a little jealous of the way red looks against T’Challa’s darker complexion for the same reason- the contrast is prettier than what he’d see against his own skin tone. But, as T’Challa said before, they can’t all get what they want.

T’Challa’s lips curl up a little, “you do what you want so no, I don’t know that you’ll listen,” he says but there’s an edge of playfulness in his tone that isn’t usually there when people complain about his lack of cooperation.

*

Without T’Challa to entertain him Tony spends most of his time avoiding others in a garden a ways away from T’Challa’s house if you could call it that. Tony is used to comforts but even he’d been impressed with T’Challa’s living space. Anyone who hadn’t been exposed to the kind of space the royal family has here had been almost intimidated by it though they seemed to relax a little when Tony mapped things out faster than they had. Landmarks help when trying to figure out which maze of halls you’re in. Now everyone, or at least everyone Tony talks to on a regular basis, is comfortable here. Helps that its nice and that, for the most part, the people are nice too. They get a little annoyed if they think you’re stepping out of place, which is Tony pretty much all of the time, but otherwise they tend to be polite.

Polite or no Tony does prefer to spend his free time alone if he can’t find Rhodey around. The gardens are nice and they’re away from prying eyes so he finds himself there often under a large tree with a bench hanging from it. He curls up on it out of the sun and closes his eyes, letting the heat sink into his skin. Even in the shade its warm here, warmer than home though not by much. He feels bad for people who didn’t grow up in a Mediterranean climate like he had- they weren’t at all used to the heat.

The bench shifts a little and Tony opens an eye and smiles at the panther at his feet. Poor thing has one paw on the bench beside Tony but doesn’t seem to be able to figure out how to get on the moving bench. Tony extends a foot to the ground to stop it from moving and the cat puts another paw on the bench, testing the limits before lifting a hind leg onto it and pulling itself up. The first time he’d encountered a jungle cat here he almost got eaten- they’re used to humans and friendly with them, but still wild- but T’Challa had saved him. Now he’s used to the large cats coming to sit with him on the bench, heads resting in his lap as he pets their soft ears. The only downside is that he can’t move until the panther does given that they dislike being dislodged from their spots.

They remain there for a long time looking over the flowers. A few people end up in the gardens but most avoid him and Tony relaxes in the soft breeze that flows through the large garden space. Wakandan flowers smell far sweeter than anything at home.

*

When T’Challa returns from whatever political event he’d been stuck at this time Tony is curled on his bed wearing purple as requested. Its not like the light, gauzy material leave much of anything to the imagination but Tony likes the way it flows around his waist even if its not doing much of that while he’s sitting in bed. He’d meant to put down the book he’s reading to look better prepared when T’Challa walked in but he’d been too absorbed in the science to hear T’Challa’s footsteps. It doesn’t matter, his presence makes T’Challa pause at the doorway anyways, breath caught in a way that makes Tony blush a little. T’Challa has a strange fascination with the way it shows up against his skin tone- far brighter than what it’d show on his own, obviously.

“Sorry,” he says, leaning over to set the book down on one of the side tables.

T’Challa smiles and shuts the door behind him softly, “don’t apologize. Though I have been warned that you are entirely way too clever to be a concubine,” he says.

He snorts because its true, actually, not that T’Challa knows that. And he never will because there isn’t a reason for him to. “What? Do people think you literally fuck our brains out? We do retain intelligence regardless of our positions,” he points out. It’s not an opinion that’s specific to Wakanda either- in his native Italy people held similar views that Tony finds just as strange. The people that seek the sex out remain unaffected but the ones who are trained to give it? Somehow they earn a lower status and are thought of as less intelligent. T’Challa has never treated him that way though, never assumed he was lesser or lacking in intelligence. Tony would think that’s due to his obvious interest in his services if T’Challa didn’t treat everyone at Tony’s station with the same respect.

It’s why Tony ended up spending more time with him than anyone else minus Shuri though people had initially mistook his interest in the teen as a sexual one. That’s not at all the case- she’s a _child_ and even if she weren’t he’s a little too male for her tastes. He’s been sworn to secrecy and he’s upheld that but the fact that no one has noticed her obvious crush on Okoye- Shuri has good taste, Tony will give her that- is beyond him. Even Okoye is oblivious and she’s not a stupid woman. It’s made them closer, Tony thinks, that he knows something of a secret about her and she knows plenty about him that no one else does. Like the fact that he’s a genius even by Shuri’s standards, and he’s a talented inventor. She comes to him with problems sometimes and usually he’s able to solve them though there’s been a few times when he’s been out of his depth. He always catches up eventually, but sometimes that takes time.

His interest in T’Challa is far less complicated. The prince is attractive and polite, simple as that. Tony knows that’s all they’ll have anyways given that he’s next in line for the throne and expected to produce an heir. Tony is foreign born, obviously not capable of producing an heir, and also not even _close_ to the right station for T’Challa to have any real interest in him. He might not like that this is all he’ll ever get, but he’ll deal with it. When the time comes for T’Challa to marry he’ll slip away and find something new to do with himself like he had when he fled from Italy. Maybe in his next life he’ll be a pirate or something. Or maybe he’ll finally get the chance to invent full time, who knows?

“Sometimes I wonder the same thing,” T’Challa murmurs, drawing Tony’s attention back to him. “Besides, your intelligence is what I like about you. And your beauty,” he murmurs, stepping closer to the bed. Tony crawls over to the edge of it, sitting in front of T’Challa with his head tipped up a little. It’s an invitation but T’Challa doesn’t take it right away. Instead he seems to consider Tony for a long few moments, “you don’t carry yourself like a concubine,” he says eventually.

Tony shrugs, “is there a way to carry yourself like a concubine?” he asks. Yes, his posture and general disposition is different than the others but that’s because he’s different than the others, not because the rest of the concubines all move the same way. They’ve all got the same training, but everyone tailors their movement to whomever their with at the time. People have different tastes and Tony spends most of his time catering to T’Challa.

“Yes,” T’Challa says. “And you carry yourself more like a prince. And you’re surprisingly well versed in knowledge of royal families. That isn’t the kind of knowledge I would expect out of an Italian peasant.”

Someone has said something, he’s sure, because T’Challa doesn’t usually hold any kind of suspicion in him. He sighs, wilting a little and it’s not with the intent of getting sympathy from T’Challa but that’s what happens. “Look, my past isn’t relevant and I know how to read. Its not hard to understand what the priests are writing when you’re actually literate.” Unusual for his country and he’s sure T’Challa can gather enough information from that to determine that he hadn’t been a peasant. But it doesn’t mean he’d been royalty either. Could have meant he was in the church, which is what T’Challa assumes.

“I thought you didn’t believe in a god. Or gods,” he says, adding in the extras mostly thanks to the way Wakandan religion works.

Tony shakes his head, “I don’t.” It’s enough, he thinks, to give a motivation as to why someone from the church would leave a cushy position. It explains enough that T’Challa stops digging. He leans forward and kisses Tony softly.

“Some people think you are a spy,” he says, clearly amused by this.

Tony throws back his head and laughs. “Oh, that’s funny. I’m not a spy,” he tells T’Challa. And even if he were it’d be Italy he’d sell out. He loves his home, but he doesn’t care for the church or the monarchy and those two institutions are so intertwined it makes the love he has for Italy jaded and tarnished. Here, things are different.

*

Shuri thinks her brother is an idiot, going and falling in love with the unusual concubine. Yes, she understands why Tony holds an appeal, and she knows T’Challa has time before he’s expected to settle into his position as prince. But he’s stupid for this nonetheless. T’Challa looks lost but Shuri’s solution is simple. “Stop seeing him T’Challa. You’re only tormenting yourself.”

T’Challa shakes his head, “its not that simple,” he says when it is. He just doesn’t want it to be that simple because if it is than he has no choice but to admit that he’s stalling.

“Yes it is. You will never be together, so quit while you’re ahead,” she tells him.

“I thought you liked him,” T’Challa mumbles.

Shuri shrugs, “I do. But I also know that you’re being stupid so stop stalling and break it off, move on, do _something_.” She knows T’Challa isn’t going to follow her advice; he’s never been very good at listening to things he doesn’t want to hear. Not unusual for anyone she supposes, even if he’s gotten better at listening to things in political spaces. In personal situations though? T’Challa knows best even when he’s making a stupid decision like now.

“You don’t know what it’s like to be in love,” he tells her and that’s probably true.

But she’s not stupid either. “Its Tony or Wakanda, T’Challa. You can’t have both.”

*

Tony is curled on T’Challa’s bed snoring softly. He’s a light sleeper so as soon as T’Challa stirs the bed Tony will wake up, which is why he stands at the side of the bed for so long. He looks much more at peace asleep, like whatever haunts him while he’s awake doesn’t follow him into his dreams. The purple material he’s wearing is twisted around one of his legs while the other is half curled to his chest. T’Challa gives it a few more moments before he crawls into bed with Tony, stirring him as usual.

Tony lifts his head, blinking blearily but immediately crawls to T’Challa when he opens his arms. He wraps his arms around Tony carefully, pressing his face into Tony’s soft hair. Its curly and unruly, but not at all like T’Challa’s. Tony’s curls are much looser than his, and his hair is far softer. The way it sticks to his head when wet is especially amusing given that he usually only sees it that way if Tony has gotten caught in the rain and he never fails to remind T’Challa of an angry cat.

It takes a few moments but Tony eventually drifts back off and T’Challa eventually falls asleep too, breathing in Tony’s pleasant scent.

*

Rhodey throws his head back and laughs, “you did _what_?” he asks and Tony shrugs sheepishly.

“It seemed like a good idea at the time,” he says in his defense.

“You have the impulse control of a child. A really dumb one,” he says and that’s just rude. True, but rude.

He opens his mouth to tell Rhodey this when they’re interrupted by a flurry of movement and noise. Okoye appears on his left side, “come with me,” she says and he frowns at Rhodey but he looks just as confused.

“I’ll talk to you later,” he says, scurrying off after Okoye. He’s led to a room he’s not entirely unfamiliar with though he’s never spent much time in here. All his stuff, which admittedly isn’t a lot, is in here as well and his eyebrows draw together in confusion. “What’s going on?” he asks Okoye.

She sighs, “T’Challa has abdicated the throne and seems to think people will hold _you_ responsible for that choice. So I’m here to ensure your safety,” she tells him. She’s annoyed, he can tell, but she doesn’t let it show like most would. He’s just gotten good at reading her facial expressions over the last couple years.

He considers things for a few moments and then sighs. “Look, if you want me out of your hair I’ll go,” he tells her. He hadn’t meant to be a nuisance to the people here and he has no clue what T’Challa is thinking but its nothing good anyways.

Okoye looks him over for a long moment before she speaks. “Why are you here?” she asks.

Whatever her goal is he’s not sure but he can tell she’s looking for a specific answer. So he’s honest. “This is better than what my home country had to offer.” Its vague and she knows it so she rolls her eyes.

“And what was that, exactly? Because you certainly weren’t a peasant.”

“No,” he agrees, “I was a prince but my father was abusive and so was the church I was so expected to cater to. I don’t believe in god, and I don’t believe in my family either. So I left.”

Okoye frowns, “to be a concubine?” she asks, clearly confused about his choice.

Tony rolls his eyes, “I’ve been treated better here as a concubine than I ever was at home. I like it here, I like my position-”

“You like T’Challa,” she corrects and he shrugs.

“That’s not exactly a crime,” he points out.

“Well,” she murmurs, “we’ll see about that.”

*

T’Challa shows up roughly an hour later to find him and Okoye playing chess. “I told you to guard him,” he tells her in a waspish tone.

“She has been,” Tony tells him, tone just as harsh. “But standing outside the door defeats the purpose of moving my room to confuse people who are looking for me, doesn’t it?” he points out.

Okoye had agreed with that assessment, hence her presence in here. She’s not a stupid or incapable woman; she’s been doing her job while also playing a good game of chess. He’s impressed.

T’Challa deflates a little and looks away. “That’s a good point. Sorry,” he murmurs.

“As you should be,” Okoye tells him bluntly and Tony laughs. He likes her, can see why Shuri does too even if she’s obviously not an appropriate choice for her.

“You know you’re being stupid, right?” Tony tells T’Challa, who frowns. Okoye looks just as confused though she shouldn’t be.

“I… did this for you,” he says and Tony knows that.

“That’s why it’s stupid. I’m a concubine, T’Challa, not a life partner.” Not that he doesn’t want to be and he’s sure Okoye can see that on his face but T’Challa obviously feels a little too dejected for that.

“I’ve never looked down at you for that,” he points out and Tony smiles.

“I know. But I think you can do better and- T’Challa; you can’t just give up a country for me, that’s insane. These people need you,” he says.

T’Challa gives Okoye a suspicious look but her face gives away nothing. “I am not giving up my country, why are people acting like I am? I gave up my _position_ , one I have never wanted and one Shuri can fulfill. That does not mean I have given up all possible participation in Wakanda.”

The words are more aimed at Okoye that Tony but he responds anyways. “Honey you’re giving this up for a _relationship_ and you have no idea if it’ll last,” he says softly.

T’Challa shrugs, “maybe not, but I love you more than I’ve ever loved that throne and I refuse to give up my happiness because of other people’s expectations of me. Not when there are dozens of viable solutions starting with my sister.”

Okoye sucks in a breath but Tony speaks before she can. “And did you ask Shuri about this? Because it’d be rather selfish of you to stick her with a position you didn’t want if she doesn’t want it either. Maybe if the reason were better I’d get that, but I’m not worth political upheaval.”

T’Challa frowns, “why is it that you don’t consider yourself worthy of my attentions?”

Well, the fact that he’s lied, even if it’s only by omission, about his past since the day they’ve met for one. But he’s not going to come clean, not even now even if Okoye knows the truth anyways. “Worthy of your attention? Sure, I don’t see why I’m not. But worthy of an entire country thrown into a political tailspin? I’m not really sure anyone is worth that.”

The answer seems to surprise Okoye and T’Challa both but probably for different reasons. “Well I’ve done what I’ve done and I refuse to take it back whether or not you’ll join me,” T’Challa says and Tony raises an eyebrow. Okoye spins in her seat. Obviously shocked because she’d thought T’Challa would return to his position if he thought Tony rejected him. Frankly so did Tony. Okoye gives him a _look_ and he knows exactly what she’s asking but he doesn’t say it. When she gives him another look, nodding to T’Challa its him that speaks up.

“What is it that she thinks will get me to give you up?” he asks, voice tired.

He considers things for a few tense moments before he sighs. “I don’t carry myself like a concubine because I used to be a prince. In Italy. I hated it so I left,” he says and, to his intense surprise and especially Okoye’s, T’Challa smile wide.

“Then you know why I did what I did,” he says and Tony sighs.

“Well, that’s one way to put it.”

*

Shuri is clearly judging T’Challa but Tony does have to admit that he’s happier than Tony has ever seen him without the political pressure of next-in-line for the throne. He’s got an arm wrapped around Tony’s shoulders- his mostly clothed shoulders and Tony has discovered he hates clothing- while he judges Shuri’s speech. Turns out he’s actually a much better advisor to the throne than he is the next in line to sit on it. People aren’t happy about it but Shuri doesn’t mind, surprisingly. She’d said that she loves inventing, but that she’d always wanted more to do with politics. She’d felt she’d been snubbed thanks to having the misfortune of being born a girl.

That’s probably true, though she’s doing fine now. People have faith in her even if they’re all still angry with T’Challa and _especially_ with Tony. Frankly its not his fault he developed a relationship with the prince and most of the irritation is strictly because he’s Italian born- no one knows about his previous political position- so he ignores it. Baseless hate has never captured Tony’s attention.

T’Challa leans in and presses a kiss to Tony’s temple and Shuri throws a sock at him. “Stop paying attention to your ex concubine and pay attention, I don’t want to mess this up,” she says.

Tony sighs, “speaking of distractions is it really necessary for me to wear clothes? I prefer being mostly naked- clothing is distracting.”

Shuri lets out a long, annoyed sigh when T’Challa basically short circuits and Tony starts laughing. “My _Bast_ , T’Challa its not like you haven’t seen all he has to offer before- this is absurd.”

**Author's Note:**

> [My writing Tumblr](https://tenspencerriedplease.tumblr.com/)


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